Thursday, November 15, 2007

UTI Mutual Fund (UTI MF) announces its partnership with Standard Chartered Bank, one of the leading international banks in the UAE as the formal authorizer for opening and managing its New Fund Offer (NFO) applications in the UAE. This unique partnership will, for the first time in the history of Mutual Fund industry enable Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) in the UAE to invest in a Mutual Fund using Dirham cheques. UTI MF also announced the launch of its latest scheme to the market on 12 November - UTI-Infrastructure Advantage Fund-Series I. The NFO units are available for purchase only during the NFO period which closes on 19 December. UTI - Infrastructure Advantage Fund-Series I is a three year close-ended Equity Scheme with an investment objective to provide income distribution and /or medium to long term capital appreciation by investing predominantly in equity / equity-related instruments in the companies engaged either directly or indirectly in the infrastructure growth of the Indian economy. Speaking at a press conference on the significance of the agreement, Mr. Jaideep Bhattacharya, Chief Marketing Officer of UTI Asset Management Company (AMC) said: ’We are delighted to announce this unique partnership with Standard Chartered Bank. The partnership offers ultimate convenience to NRI investors who can now have the option to subscribe to our latest NFO by paying through their Dirham accounts without transferring money from Dirham to Rupee which can be time consuming.’ "The partnership with Standard Chartered Bank reflects UTI MF’s strategy to offer multiple access points to NRIs in the UAE. Standard Chartered Bank is a dominant market leader in several markets across the Middle East that has demonstrated real local expertise. We propose to gradually extend this facility to NRIs across the Middle East leveraging from their network and capabilities," he added. Mr. Azeem Rahim, Regional Head of Transaction Banking, MENA, Standard Chartered Bank said: ’’This agreement is a significant step for Standard Chartered, demonstrating our commitment to meeting the diverse financial needs of the NRI customers in this market. Our Deira, Emaar Business Park and Mankhool Road branches in Dubai will accept NFO applications from NRIs with immediate effect.’ The UTI-Infrastructure Advantage Fund-Series I will invest in sectors that include Construction, Energy, Engineering, Metals, Power, Telecom, Transportation and Airports. UTI MF has a track record of managing an existing fund in the Infrastructure sector, which has been rated as a five star fund by Value Research and CPR1 by CRISIL.

More News.... Source:  AME Info